Colombian model and contender to Miss World contest sentenced to 15 years in prison for smuggling cocaine into Guangzhou

Guangzhou July 26:Juliana Lopez Sarrazola , 22-year-old Colombian model hoping to take part in the Miss World beauty contest in China, has been sentenced to a 15-year jail term after a Chinese court found her guilty of smuggling drugs into the country.

Juliana Lopez Sarrazola would also be expelled from China after completing her jail term, the People’s Intermediate Court of Guangzhou in Guangdong province ruled yesterday.

Sarrazola was caught trying to smuggle 610 grams of cocaine hidden inside a laptop at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport during a visit to China on July 18 last year.

Sarrazola, the winner of the Miss Antioquia beauty contest in Colombia, had been hoping to win the Miss World Colombia contest in July and then compete in the Miss World 2015 finals in Sanya, China, last December.

News that she had gone missing sparked lot of unrest in social media.

Sarrazola had reportedly needed to borrow money from a man identified in court with the name, Sergio, who would give her USD 2,500 only if she agreed to help him smuggle the drugs.

The lawyer also argued that the money she was to have received after transporting the drugs was only a tiny portion of their value, which indicated she had only a marginal role in the drug smuggling, the report said.